Samantha McNichols is the Legal Fellow at the ACLU of Hawaiʻi where she works on all legal matters defending and promoting civil rights and civil liberties in Hawaiʻi.
Originally from the East Coast, Samantha is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law. During law school, she externed with the National Center for Youth Law, where she worked on the Legal Advocacy team to advance impact litigation on behalf of children across public systems. She also interned with the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, assisting attorneys and their clients in the Misdemeanor Unit and Research Unit, and worked with the California Appellate Project, where she served individuals incarcerated on death row awaiting habeas counsel. She has also worked on a wide range of pro bono matters and contributed to the Policy Advocacy Clinic’s campaign to abolish fines and fees in the juvenile legal system.
Before law school, Samantha worked as a paralegal for the Federal Defenders of New York, supporting the defense of individuals charged with federal crimes, and as an intern investigator for the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, conducting pretrial investigations for clients in the juvenile trial division.
Samantha is passionate about supporting individuals who are facing incarceration, oppression, and injustice and excited to contribute to civil rights and public interest litigation centered on advocating with clients and changing systems during her fellowship with the ACLU.